Why use Notes? To grow on Substack.

But how exactly to do that?

In past posts, I’ve told you that if you’re new to Substack and trying to grow from a small base, Notes works best when you interact with other people’s notes, rather than publishing your own.

However at some point, it makes sense to start writing your own notes1. When? When you’ve got at least a few hundred subscribers. Before that, your notes will most likely vanish into the void.

This post is for you if you’re ready to publish original notes of your own.

If you’ve still got a small subscriber list, don’t waste your time on this one. Instead, review these other posts of mine, which include more advice about how to grow with Notes as a small/new creator: How to Use Substack Notes to Get More Subscribers + The Notes algorithm explained (by its actual creator).

In this post:

• How to write for Substack Notes

• 4 types of notes to write

• Key takeaways

How to write for Substack Notes

Follow these 5 simple steps to write notes to publish on Substack Notes

1. Banish the blank page

A blank page is a creativity killer and procrastination creator, even for short-form content like notes. Banish it by creating a list where you can drop ideas whenever they come to you.

Keep your list in a Google sheet, phone note taker, or a Notes scheduling tool (I use Finn Tropy’s Substack Scheduled Notes*).

Whenever you get an idea, drop it into the list. One or two words will do; you can expand the idea and polish it up later.

2. Set aside 30 - 60 minutes

Good notes take time. Set aside 30 - 60 minutes to turn as many of your ideas into notes as possible. You might end up with 1, 2 or 10 notes from one session; it doesn’t matter how many… some days will be slow and effortful, some days you’ll be a genius.

Batching up your notes creation process is smart because if you’re usually a long-form writer, it can take a little while to get into the groove of crafting short-form posts, but once you do, the process gets fast and fluid.

3. Decide if you want to use AI

No, I’m not telling you to use AI to write notes. Yuck.

AI-generated notes do work for attracting certain types of readers, but I hate 98% of notes created by AI writing tools.

On the other hand, I love deconstructing AI-generated notes and rebuilding them into something human and authentic. AI-generated notes usually have a Notes-optimised structure (something I struggle with as a long-form writer), and every iteration gives you a different angle to explore.

So if short-form structure is a struggle for you or if your idea needs to be fleshed out, try asking an AI tool to make 15 Subsack notes from your idea, and use the results as a starting point.

Don’t use AI if you’re likely to waste all your creative genius on creating the perfect prompt trying to get better results from AI - skip the middleman and save time by writing your own notes from scratch.

4. Create a set of notes

Choose an idea from your list and draft 5-10 notes based on that idea, one or two from each of the four types of notes in the second part of this post as inspiration.

Aim for 50–250 words per note, but go longer if you feel inspired.

​A typical structure is ​1-5 short paragraphs, often with multiple single-sentence lines and lots of white space to keep them scannable. Some of your notes should also have a photo or short video.

Save your finished notes to a spreadsheet, Word doc or straight into a Notes scheduling tool.

5. Publish your notes

Shuffle your notes so that your ideas and styles vary from day to day. For example, if you created 10 notes around one idea in a single session, intersperse them with notes from other sessions in your publishing schedule.

Aim to publish one note per day. I’m not convinced more than one will achieve anything other than annoying your most loyal readers (willing to be proved wrong).

Time of day? Don’t overthink it. Among your ideal readers, some will use the Substack app in the morning, some in the evening, some during the workday, some only on weekends. Add in the fact that they may be in twenty different time zones and you realise that it’s impossible to choose a ‘perfect’ time.

Having said that, certain times are crowded, with many people posting notes all at the same time - notably the middle of the day US Eastern time (source). As a result, notes posted at other times typically get more engagement per note, with weekend evenings US Eastern time being a sweet spot (source).

Also, don’t worry about your notes vanishing from the feed within hours. I often get engagement on notes that are days or even months old; they do seem to have a longer life than posts on other platforms.

4 types of notes

Substack Notes exists to get more of the right people to see you, care about you, and eventually subscribe to your publication. You’re on Notes to build relationships and get subscribers. That’s it.

Substack is not like Insta or TikTok, which aim to keep users scrolling so they can show more ads. Substack is designed to connect new readers to creators they might like and get them to click through to subscribe. Posts that encourage endless scrolling and mindless likes are not rewarded by the Notes algorithm. Meaningful connections are.

Likes, engagement and attention are good, but they are a means to an end, they are not the end game on Substack Notes. Likes, engagement and attention show the algorithm that your post is worthy of being seen by more people. But they are useless on their own (except to give you a dopamine hit).

How to build relationships and get subscribers? By interacting with other people’s notes (this is the best way if you don’t have many subscribers), and by publishing notes of the following 4 types.

1. Likeability, relatability, transparency

Posts that show your personality, values and everyday frustrations so people feel “this person is like me”. People who like you are more likely to subscribe.

Posts that introduce you and your publication and invite people to connect and subscribe. 6 Must-haves For a Substack Intro Note | Karen Cherry

Posts that show how you work, think, or create, making your expertise feel transparent and real, and building trust between you and your readers.

2. Authority, expertise, thought leadership

Posts where you state clear opinions, predictions, or frameworks that position you as an expert in your niche.

Posts that comment on current events, industry news or new trends, showcasing your insights so people feel “This is someone worth listening to”.

Posts that repeat the strongest ideas from your top long-form posts or past notes, so new followers are repeatedly exposed to your core mission and gain a clear idea of who you are and what you do best.

Posts that teach one specific thing, such as a hot tip, mini-tutorial or short checklist to solve a concrete problem for your ideal subscriber.

If you’re a fiction writer or poet, posts that showcase the strength and/or range of your work will encourage new readers to connect with you.

3. Conversation starters + hot takes

Short, opinionated posts or questions designed to spark replies, controversy and debate. These posts encourage engagement, which shows the algorithm that your notes are interesting, which could increase their reach, so new people will see you.

4. Community, networking, credibility and proof

Posts that highlight other people’s work. These are a gift to your current followers, who may benefit from the other creator, and they teach the algorithm about overlaps in topic areas and audience types, reinforcing the Substack network effect. (Plus, it’s just a super nice thing to do!)

Posts that share case studies, screenshots, or testimonials that demonstrate you and your publication get results for your readers.

Posts that thank new subscribers, celebrate milestones, or highlight shout-outs you’ve received, reinforcing that others already trust you.

Final thoughts

Substack Notes exists to help the right readers find you, connect with you, and subscribe to your publication. Use it to build relationships and connections.

​If you’re committed to regular note-posting, it can help to systematize: Keep an ideas list so you never have to face a blank page, write multiple notes at a time to make the most of momentum and store the finished drafts in a sheet, document or scheduling tool to make publishing a breeze.

Each note should aim to do one of these four things:

1. to help people know you and like you, or

2. to showcase your helpfulness, expertise, knowledge or talent, or

3. to get in front of new people, or

4. to lift up other creators and leverage Substack’s network effects such as audience overlaps.

And finally (please!) write like a human: AI tools can help with structure and might provide new angles for you to explore but don’t waste your creative genius (or time) creating perfect prompts in the hope you’ll get better results from AI. We all need a little human in our feeds these days.

That’s it for this week, have a good one,

*^{This is an affiliate link, I’ll earn a small commission if you purchase. It’s a great tool and totally worth it.}

^{Cover image by Freepik}